A gig so good, they played it twice..
It’s time for the B-stage. I heard a fan earlier talking about how ‘they do this techno bit on the catwalk’. He must have caught the show before.. but I wouldn’t describe this remix of ‘God Put a Smile’ as ‘techno techno..’ Each to their own.
New Jersey is a lucky place. Like LA, Chicago, Toronto, Paris, Stockholm, Rotterdam.. They all have one thing in common. Two chances to catch the Coldplay show, rather than one. For Oxfam, this gives us a chance for 40 lucky volunteers, rather than the normal 20. It’s a good feel for a Monday night today. Lots of people coming up to find out what we’re up to, at our little booths. Oxfam is up to all sorts, to overcome poverty across the world. Lobbying world leaders at the UN recently for the Control Arms campaign. Oxfam America is still working in the Gulf Coast, following the initial devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Intermon Oxfam, today, took our signatures from the Coldplay shows in Barcelona and Madrid, to the a Signatures Handover in the President’s Palace in Spain. Oxfam Ambassador Miguel Bose talked with the Institutional Director of the government, about Coldplay’s involvement with Oxfam to Make Trade Fair in the world. The signatures have been handed over. Coldplay fans in Spain have used their voice, both to sing Coldplay songs, and to stand up and speak out about poverty.
Small actions really do change lives. You can buy Fairtrade coffee. Boil only enough water for one cup of tea. Sign a petition for Health and Education For All, at a Coldplay show. You’ve got that power.
The band have moved up to the C-stage now. They’re on the IZOD Center balcony, the mood has shifted. It’s harmonica’s, acoustics and harmonies. Science is ringing through the arena. Chris Martin helped out with the lyrics by 14′000 fans.
Oxfam has over 550 people signed up tonight, who want to take action and find out more about overcoming social injustice. More than 40′000 people have signed up or signed a petition on this tour so far. That’s an incredible number. Coldplay have done something amazing by inviting Oxfam to be here.
I just want to mention. I met a couple of ‘Coldplayers’ earlier. They’re always so supportive of Oxfam’s work. So cheerful too. Thanks for that! The band just came sprinting past, to get back to the stage. It’s almost time for the encore. Almost time to move on to Boston. There’s just a couple of songs to go first.. oh, and I just got surrounded by a group of the crew, who are excited about the post-show ‘hot-dog party’! Nice.
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Coldplay has invited Oxfam on their mammoth Viva La Vida World Tour. Throughout 2008 the band played huge shows across 3 continents and 18 countries. Oxfam volunteers were there every step of the way, talking to 100,000s of people about how they can take action to overcome poverty. Now in 2010, Coldplay continue this tour with shows across in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico. Oxfam groups around the world will again join the tour, blogging as they go.
Christa October 29th, 2008 at 1:36 pm
Awesome Pete! Thanks